berries, edible roots, and sweet nuts. I set simple snares, using the skills I' d learned to feed my family, and managed to c

. As he regained his strength, he started hunting again. He would disappear for hours and return with a deer or a wild boar slung over

m, massive body, his steady breathing a comforting lullaby. His presence was a solid, protective wall against the dangers of th

et full of late-autumn berries. But the cougar wa

hey were the same eyes as the cougar. On top of his head, a pair of tawny cougar ears twitched, alert and listening. He was tall and powerfully built, dressed in worn leather pants a

e was a low rumble, the same sou

ping a beat. I knew, wit

k a step toward me. He moved with a pr

id, his golden eyes fixed on mine

guessed his

ouncil couldn't assign him a rank. In their eyes, he was a soulless anomaly, a blank, a genetic dead end. To be unreadable was to be

Together, we worked to prepare for the coming winter. We smoked meat, dried fruits and herbs, and reinforced the cave, making

the sheer power he possessed. "You're so strong, Caleb

elight flickering in his pained eyes. "I don't have a

ng of sympathy for this powerful, gentle man, who had been judged and discarded

ced my hand on his ar

, my voice firm. "You

s. And in that moment, I knew I had found something in this wilderness fa